Gene Ellwood
Holden WB ute

“I’m currently revisiting a model of car I had in the 90s, and it’s my last build I’ll ever do. It’s a WB ute with a 253 and four-speed, and I’m building it to look like it came off the showroom floor as an upper-spec model.

“It was looking a bit rough when I picked it up, but it had barely any rust. I’ve done all bodywork and painted it, and picked up a mint set of SS Cragars to put under it.

“The build is now heading towards the finish line, and then I’ll just drive it and enjoy it.”

Nicholas Stradiotto
Chrysler VK Valiant

“Here’s my work-in-progress VK Valiant sedan – a standard-looking Val with not-so-standard running gear.

“It runs a spicy 265 with tri-metal bearings, flat-top pistons, resized conrods, 10:1 comp ratio, E49-spec cam, reconditioned head, new valves with a three-angle cut, Cain four-barrel manifold and a Carter Competition 600 carb.

“Behind the beast will be a Torqueflite 904 ’box with a 3000rpm stall. I’m not going to respray the yellow exterior; it’ll just get a cut and polish, topped off with a white vinyl roof.

“Plenty of hours have been put into this project, from fixing plenum rust and respraying the underbody to making the vinyl roof – it just never ends! Hopefully she’ll see the road in the near future.”

Jake Straker
Holden HT Kingswood wagon

“Here’s my 1970 HT Kingswood station wagon. It is a Mosman Park-assembled car in Kashmir White with Moroccan Red interior, originally sold at Sydney Atkinson Motors in Perth.

“It had been sitting for over 30 years behind my old man’s shed, until I got it going and drove it out.

“It runs a 186 bored out to 192ci, a Trimatic gearbox, and dealer-fitted power steering and air con.

“We have rebuilt the engine with all the goodies like a cam, Cain intake, Holley 350 carb, electronic dizzy and extractors.

“I’m keeping it old-school with the jellybean mags and chrome stuff all over the motor.

“I also found the original WA number plates: UNC192. I’m in a wheelchair, so my carers and I work on the car during the week, and the build’s been underway for about two years now.

“I’m hoping to repaint it in the factory Kashmir White, or close to it, and then get it back on the road!”

Luke Crowther
Chrysler VJ Valiant

“It all started with Dad purchasing a 383 big-block when I was a teenager, with plans to put it in a Dodge ute.

“But life happened, and eventually Dad ended up purchasing this 1973 VJ Valiant sedan from the father of a bloke he worked with, who had actually worked at the Chrysler factory in Adelaide and put the steering column in her!

“So, that 383 will finally find a home soon in the VJ after 20-plus years, although it will now be a 496 thanks to a stroker kit from 440 Source.

“The car has always been garaged or in storage, so the only rust in the whole thing was the battery tray.

“The white vinyl roof has been removed, the exterior’s been repainted, and a nine-inch diff, chassis connectors and mini-tubs have been installed.

“We are now in the final stages of putting the engine together and rebuilding the front end.

“We have had one rule during this build: Do it once, do it right.

“I’m looking forward to getting her on the road and hitting Chryslers on the Murray with the old fella.”

Brandon Paull
Nissan Skyline R31

“This is my 1988 Nissan Skyline Ti R31, which I found on Marketplace in November last year – unregistered, neglected and home to a family of spiders.

“So far, I’ve got it on the road, fitted coil-overs, found a factory cassette player to replace the aftermarket unit, had it detailed, fitted an S1 boot lip (which I had Moog from Mighty Car Mods sign) and have slowly been making my way through the rest of the car to freshen it up.

“My plans are to keep it pretty basic and street-friendly; all I really want to do performance-wise is mechanically replicate a Silhouette GTS2 to a ‘modern-day’ standard.

“So, I’ll be aiming for roughly 140kW (188hp) with some light porting of the head, a mild cam, headers, high-flow cat and a 21/4in exhaust system with a Varex muffler on the back.

“I’m still unsure whether I’ll wait for the auto to blow up and convert it to manual or give the auto a freshen-up and add an aftermarket trans cooler.

“The body is just about finished; I just need to get a couple of dents fixed and repaint the front and rear bumpers.

“For the interior, I need to find replacement carpet, have the dash cluster reconditioned, and either reco the standard steering wheel or install my MOMO Montecarlo wheel from my old Bluebird.

“Most importantly, it needs to be enjoyed, and I’ve been having a great time with it so far.”

Craig Fordham
1968 Mitsubishi Colt

“I’m currently throwing spanners at this old 1968 Mitsubishi Colt 1100F to get it back up and running and hitting the Adelaide streets.

“Inspiration has come from the original 1960s Ampol trials with the Mitsubishi Works Team, and more recently, street machine guru Scott Briant in Victoria doing wonders with one and building a tubbed twin-turbo beast.

“The old girl has been fairly neglected, so I’m slowly collecting parts and piecing it back together.

“Once it’s running, I’ll turn my attention to the bodywork.

“Luckily, the interior is in great nick, and I have a spare-parts car to donate what is needed.

“The 1100Fs run a tiny KE44 1100cc engine, but they respond well to carby upgrades and a bit of love.”

Got a sweet ride that’s currently in the build and want to share it with our readers? Email photos of it (2MB+ each) along with some details on the build to inthebuild@streetmachine.com.au.